Natures Riches – Harvest Approaches.

As we are now entering August, now is the time for us to really enjoy nature at her most sumptuous. The gardens and wildlife seem to be overflowing with life colour and vitality. So what are we going to do about it?

I know that most of you enjoy nature’s wonders, but how many of you take a little bit of nature forward with you into the new year?

Last years summer solstice saw me in green frock in a field by a long abandoned church meditating in one of Roy Luck’s wonderful shapes and spending dawn to dusk hand in hand with nature. At that time I had gathered flowers to make a fire wheel, part of the Wiccan ritual for celebrating the solstice, which can be seen in the photo of me on the founder’s page.

On my return from the weekend, I took the flowers, with some rose petals from my garden and dried them. I kept them close all winter, and whenever I needed a little zap of summer energy I would inhale their fragrance and remember those glorious days.

This years summer solstice, saw me once again mediating in one of Roy’s shapes, this time in a friends garden, and after I gave my solstice Potpourri back to the earth by putting it into the fire, with my thanks, for all the wonders I have seen in that year. For the blessings that have been given to me in that time, and for the love and sustenance that I have received.

So with all that rambling in mind, why don’t you try it. Take a little bit of this month. A little bit of the summer with you into the future.

A pretty flower that catches your eye, a pebble from the beach, dry out some of the lavender, rose petals, sage, rosemary that you have growing in your garden and dry them out, put them in a glass jar and hold them for a year. Don’t forget to return them to the mother with your thanks once the year is out, and as you select your tokens of this August, think about what you would like to accomplish by next August.

For the clever ones among you, who are not too timid to face the possibility of exploding Demi Johns, harvest some elderflowers, they make a fantastic wine when they smell sweet. Dried they really cool you down if added to your bath water, and elderflowers make a great cool tea and cordial.

I am off to the beach this August with kids in tow, so I expect this year’s tokens for me will involve Kentish sand and shells, and who knows what else will catch my eye.

Happy Harvesting

Keara